Landscaper to librarian, man’s job is to help others find theirs

For 15 years, Charles Gross worked in very physical jobs — commercial landscaping for a decade, followed by a few years as a carpenter, then a boat builder.

The wear and tear on his body prompted him to find a less physically demanding line of work. Without a college degree or much other experience under his weather-beaten belt, it was a challenge that would be daunting to some people. But not to Gross.

Today, Gross is a librarian at the Monmouth County Library System’s Eastern Branch on Route 35 in Shrewsbury. His specialty is the library’s Career Information Center, where he assists people looking for a career change or new employment locate information they need on a computer and among stacks of books and periodicals.

After hanging up his tools and doing a one-year stint at Brookdale Community College’s library in Middletown, Gross knew a career helping people find information was for him. While he worked in the library of Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch on evenings and weekends, he completed his undergraduate studies at Thomas Edison State College in Trenton. He then decided to pursue a master’s degree in library science from Rutgers University in New Brunswick while working part-time in the library of Monmouth University in West Long Branch.

Digitizing records

As he first did at Brookdale, Gross initially spent much of his time at Monmouth on a “retrospective conversion” project, a huge undertaking at libraries across the country during the 1980s involving digitizing records so they could be easily accessed on computers. After earning his graduate degree in 1991, Gross began working full-time at the Monmouth University library.

“At that point, things began to get even more interesting,” Gross said.

He joined the Monmouth County Library system in 1995 as the law librarian in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution in Freehold. Gross, of Middletown, said he interacted daily with inmates, some of whom were doing legal research to better understand their options while in prison.

In 2000, shortly after the Career Information Center was launched in the Shrewsbury location, Gross began his current assignment. He said it has been his most satisfying professional experience.

“It’s nice to be able to help people in some way,” Gross said. “I’m a librarian, not a career counselor, but I’m glad to be able to help people learn how they can develop new skills, find different resources like trade journals they didn’t realize existed, or get academic credit for their professional experience.”

Computer classroom

Gross said he is most proud of helping to establish a computer classroom at the Shrewsbury branch this past year. It’s particularly helpful for senior professionals looking to enhance their computer skills and take more advantage of Web-based resources.

In addition to maintaining a large library of circulating and reference materials on changing or choosing a career, interviewing, job hunting, networking and resume writing, the Career Information Center makes available online resources with business directories and periodicals, employment projections and job listings. Online resources are available at www.monmouthcountylib.org/cic.htm.

For a one-on-one appointment with Gross at the Shrewsbury location, or to contact him with questions, call him at the library at 866-941-8188.

This writeup with new photos appeared in the August 6 edition of the Asbury Park Press.